The Bleacher Bums: May 24, 2005 Archive

Excuse me, but when did Major League Baseball become the Daughters of the American Revolution?

In advance of the Indians-Twins series, Major League Baseball warned the scrappy Central Division warriors against, well, playing baseball the way it used to be played. You know, chin music, war of words, an occasional two steps toward the mound.

What is going on here?

We call upon Bert Blyleven to try to sort this out. Bert was interviewed by Tom Crann on MPR's All Things Considered on Monday evening. (
Listen with Real Player).

You know who I miss? Dennis Martinez. If there wasn't an opponents name in the box score in the morning under HBP, Dennis was having a lousy game. Pushing batters off the plate was just the way the game was played and if you didn't like, well, there was always Nova.

I don't know if you watched Baseball Tonight on ESPN last night (Monday) but Harold Reynolds and John Kruk (who prove that there realy is life after baseball for mediocre players) had their own war of words over -- what else -- a tremendous gaffe by the Chicago Cubs.

Or was it?

Lee was the runner -- and we use the term only because we have to -- at first on a hit behind him down the line to right. As he headed for second, Juan Uribe, the secondbaseman, held up his hands and said "foul ball." (See Cub town)

It was, however, fair.

Lee bought the fake.

Idiot!

Harold Reynolds criticized Uribe, saying something preposterous like "it wasn't courteous," which sent John Kruk into a riotous exchange noting that most middle infielders are notorious liars.

The solution? When Uribe comes to bat, the Chicago Cubs pitcher drills him.

Funny, because this very same team was known as the Montreal Expos just last season. The Expos began play as an expansion team in 1969. The original team in Washington, the Senators, was formed in 1901. Of course, they moved to Minnesota and began play as the Twins in 1961. The Twins still recognize Washington statistics in their media guide. For instance, Walter Johnson is listed as the franchises’ all time leader in victories with 417 (good luck chasing that one Johan).

Where then does this 1905 nonsense come from? Leave it to baseball-reference.com to clear up the mystery. According to their Minnesota Twins Team Index page, “The Senators were officially the Washington Nationals from 1905-1955, but the fans never recognized them as such” -- at least until now.

Apparently MLB is so ashamed of the Expos that they are telling us that big league baseball never existed in Montreal and that, despite a mountain of evidence to the contrary, there has been a team widely known as the “Nationals” playing baseball in our nation’s capital for the past 100 years.

Maybe the Cubs should take note and put a “2003 World Series Champions” patch on their jerseys. I’m sure Steve Bartman wouldn’t mind.